The Kindertransport was an act of mercy which saved over 10,000 child refugees from Adolf Hitler's Nazi Germany, until World War II broke out and ended it all.
People of various faiths, including Quakers and Christian families, came together for this rescue effort. Many children remained in Britain to begin new lives there while others made the decision to migrate elsewhere - such as Israel, Canada or Australia.
The Operation
The Kindertransport was an unprecedented operation that saved around 10,000 Jewish children from Nazi Germany, Austria and Czechoslovakia before World War II started. Running between November 1938 and September 1939 shortly before its start date, this operation only succeeded due to increased public pressure and refugee aid committee efforts that persisted with immigration restrictions being eased on British soil.
The Kindertransport collection comprises scanned files which provide an in-depth representation of central government records transferred to The National Archives regarding this program, but does not offer a systematic or exhaustive listing of rescued children; in many instances children arrived without being listed officially due to either being too young to register themselves with authorities or complex legal arrangements surrounding their entry into Great Britain during that period.
Some Kindertransport children traveled abroad after their time in Britain, such as Australia and New Zealand, leaving behind some original records; others may have survived intact, though not always complete ones. It should also be noted that The National Archives' Kindertransport collection doesn't simply end at arrival - rather, ongoing monitoring was undertaken throughout World War II with details such as financial support for maintenance costs and religious upbringing being recorded centrally by one central record system.
One of the key psychological challenges faced by Kindertransport children was separation from their parents. Depending on their age, this was explained differently: young children might hear tales about exciting adventures they would embark upon and be told that their parents will see them soon, while older kids were told that they were being sent away for protection purposes.
After World War II had concluded, some Kindertransport children found their families again; though this process wasn't always straightforward; many had to come to terms with the fact that either one or both parents had perished during the Holocaust, or spent part or all of the war hiding or in concentration camps.
The Children’s Arrival
The Kindertransport was an ambitious operation designed to bring child refugees from Nazi Germany, Czechoslovakia, and Austria into Britain before World War II began. It's an incredible story of bravery and ingenuity: individuals put their own lives on the line to protect children from violent, racist, antisemitic persecution as they made the journey across continents to safety in England.
Operation began in 1933 with the formation of the Germany Emergency Committee of the Religious Society of Friends, more commonly known as Quakers. Members from this GEC sent members into Nazi-controlled territory to report conditions there and aid prisoners and families who had been persecuted due to race or politics.
After the November 1938 pogroms, Jewish organizations approached the GEC seeking assistance to negotiate with the British government for safe emigration of children. Six Quakers including Bertha Bracey traveled to Germany to observe and report on this situation.
Few weeks after Kristallnacht, the consortium organized Kindertransports that enabled 10,000 Jewish children to flee Nazi persecution and settle in Britain. Children were placed with foster parents, hostels, boarding schools, farms, convents and convents - many never seeing their original families again while others would find reunion with extended relatives in Britain or places such as America, Canada Australia New Zealand.
However, World War II put an end to this plan. Fearing an invasion from Germany led Great Britain to pass laws for interning 'enemy aliens,' including refugees believed to support Nazi ideology. Even though most were Jewish children living on refugee ships bound for Canada and Australia.
This exhibition examines the Kindertransport through personal artifacts and personal narratives from those who experienced it. This is the first to investigate how memory of this operation is represented both within its original countries of origin as well as host nations where refugees were resettled; museum, memorial, and commemoration spaces across different nations; as well as through artifacts from Illinois Holocaust Museum collections, testimony from survivors as well as thoughtful artistic design elements.
The Children’s Reintegration
On January 27th of every year, people worldwide remember those affected by Nazi Germany's genocide - particularly its murder of 1.5 million children in the Holocaust. One iconic example is Kindertransports which saved 10,000 Jewish children from imminent danger by placing them with foster families in England; its story became an icon of British generosity and compassion towards those in need; its story produced numerous books, films and memorials as it remains part of national memory today.
The Kindertransports were the result of the collaborative efforts of various private individuals, organisations, and groups who all came together in 1933 to aid rescue efforts. The Central British Fund for German Jewry served as an umbrella organisation; however it was its subcommittee known as Movement for the Care of Children from Germany that took on actual work of selecting, organizing and transporting the children; this subcommittee later changed to Refugee Children's Movement which eventually simply became known as Kindertransports.
Most of the children were placed with British families; however, those from small towns and villages in Germany, Austria and Czechoslovakia who needed accommodation or care were sent to centers of Jewish life - often schools or synagogues - where they would become integrated members of their local Jewish community.
After the war ended, some children could reunite with parents who had spent most of the war hiding or who had survived Nazi concentration camps; others must accept that their homes have been lost to war forever and work to find new lives for themselves - perhaps becoming teachers, doctors or scientists themselves, writers or artists.
Kindertransport children not only thrived upon arriving safely and comfortably in Britain, but went on to lead successful lives which they can be immensely proud of. Their stories deserve to be told, and we are honored to serve as an outlet for sharing these remarkable acts of bravery, ingenuity and good will.
The Children’s Future
The Kindertransport was an unprecedented humanitarian rescue scheme that took place just prior to World War Two between November 1938 and September 1939, organized by the Central British Fund for German Jewry and placed children from Nazi Germany, Austria, Czechoslovakia Poland and Danzig into British foster homes or hostels; its operation was entirely funded through charitable organizations.
Many children rescued by the Kindertransport were permanently separated from their parents who perished during the Holocaust, having an irreparable impact on both themselves and their descendants for decades to come.
As soon as the Holocaust ended, some Kindertransport children resumed their lives; some returned home while others moved elsewhere like the United States. Although it might not seem significant in comparison with all those murdered by Nazis during World War II, for these thousands of rescued children the rescue operation meant life or death.
Some children had an enjoyable stay in Britain while others experienced difficulties. If reunited with their families in Britain, they would receive British citizenship and are allowed to reside within it; otherwise they were sent elsewhere such as Australia or New Zealand where they eventually established homes of their own and started families of their own.
Some surviving Kindertransport children have gone on to become influential members of society, including Edith Winton who became an educator and later an advocate for emotionally impaired children. She was active with Kosher Meals on Wheels and Michigan Jewish AIDS Coalition until her passing in 2017. Her memoir "The Children Never Left Me" recounts her experiences during and after World War II; others have created videos to pass down their memories to future generations and keep the memory of these amazing sacrifices alive for future generations.
No comments:
Post a Comment